Faculty Bibliography

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND:The mainstay of acute pulmonary embolism (PE) treatment is anticoagulation. Timely anticoagulation correlates with decreased PE-associated mortality, but the ability to achieve a therapeutic activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) with unfractionated heparin (UFH) remains limited. Although some institutions have switched to a more accurate and reproducible test to assess for heparin's effectiveness, the anti-factor Xa (antiXa) assay, data correlating a timely therapeutic antiXa to PE-associated clinical outcomes remains scarce. We evaluated time to a therapeutic antiXa using intravenous heparin after PE response team (PERT) activation and assessed clinical outcomes including bleeding and recurrent thromboembolic events. METHODS:This was a retrospective cohort study at NYU Langone Health. All adult patients ≥18 years with a confirmed PE started on IV UFH with >2 antiXa levels were included. Patients were excluded if they received thrombolysis or alternative anticoagulation. The primary endpoint was the time to a therapeutic antiXa level of 0.3-0.7 units/mL. Secondary outcomes included recurrent thromboembolism, bleeding and PE-associated mortality within 3 months. RESULTS:A total of 330 patients with a PERT consult were identified with 192 patients included. The majority of PEs were classified as sub massive (64.6%) with 87% of patients receiving a bolus of 80 units/kg of UFH prior to starting an infusion at 18 units/kg/hour. The median time to the first therapeutic antiXa was 9.13 hours with 93% of the cohort sustaining therapeutic anticoagulation at 48 hours. Recurrent thromboembolism, bleeding and mortality occurred in 1%, 5% and 6.2%, respectively. Upon univariate analysis, a first antiXa <0.3 units/ml was associated with an increased risk of mortality [27.78% (5/18) vs 8.05% (14/174), p = 0.021]. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:We observed a low incidence of recurrent thromboembolism or PE-associated mortality utilizing an antiXa titrated UFH protocol. The use of an antiXa based heparin assay to guide heparin dosing and monitoring allows for timely and sustained therapeutic anticoagulation for treatment of PE.

BACKGROUND:Risk stratification has potential to guide triage and decision-making in cardiogenic shock (CS). We assessed the prognostic performance of the IABP-SHOCK II score, derived in Europe for acute myocardial infarct-related CS (AMI-CS), in a contemporary North American cohort, including different CS phenotypes. METHODS:The critical care cardiology trials network (CCCTN) coordinated by the TIMI study group is a multicenter network of cardiac intensive care units (CICU). Participating centers annually contribute ≥2 months of consecutive medical CICU admissions. The IABP-SHOCK II risk score includes age > 73 years, prior stroke, admission glucose > 191 mg/dl, creatinine > 1.5 mg/dl, lactate > 5 mmol/l, and post-PCI TIMI flow grade < 3. We assessed the risk score across various CS etiologies. RESULTS:= 0.17) and the IABP-SHOCK II score revealed a significant risk gradient within each SCAI stage. CONCLUSIONS:In an unselected international multicenter registry of patients admitted with CS, the IABP- SHOCK II score only moderately predicted in-hospital mortality in a broad population of CS regardless of etiology or irrespective of right, left, or bi-ventricular involvement.

Cardiogenic shock continues to carry a high mortality rate despite contemporary care, with no breakthrough therapies shown to improve survival over the past few decades. It is a time-sensitive condition that commonly results in cardiovascular complications and multisystem organ failure, necessitating multidisciplinary expertise. Managing patients with cardiogenic shock remains challenging even in well-resourced settings, and an important subgroup of patients may require cardiac replacement therapy. As a result, the idea of leveraging the collective cognitive and procedural proficiencies of multiple providers in a collaborative, team-based approach to care (the "shock team") has been advocated by professional societies and implemented at select high-volume clinical centers. A slowly maturing evidence base has suggested that cardiogenic shock teams may improve patient outcomes. Although several registries exist that are beginning to inform care, particularly around therapeutic strategies of pharmacologic and mechanical circulatory support, none of these are currently focused on the shock team approach, multispecialty partnership, education, or process improvement. We propose the creation of a Cardiogenic Shock Team Collaborative-akin to the successful Pulmonary Embolism Response Team Consortium-with a goal to promote sharing of care protocols, education of stakeholders, and discovery of how process and performance may influence patient outcomes, quality, resource consumption, and costs of care.

BACKGROUND:Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a common complication among patients with cancer and is a significant contributor to morbidity and mortality. Catheter-based therapies (CBT), including catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) and mechanical thrombectomy, have been developed and are used in patients with intermediate or high-risk PE. However, there is a paucity of data on outcomes in patients with cancer as most clinical studies exclude this group of patients. AIMS/OBJECTIVE:To characterize outcomes of patients with cancer admitted with intermediate or high-risk PE treated with CBT compared with no CBT. METHODS:Patients with an admission diagnosis of intermediate or high-risk PE and a history of cancer from October 2015 to December 2018 were identified using the National Inpatient Sample. Outcomes of interest were in-hospital death or cardiac arrest (CA) and major bleeding. Inverse probability treatment weighting (IPTW) was utilized to compare outcomes between patients treated with and without CBT. Variables that remained unbalanced after IPTW were adjusted using multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS:A total of 2084 unweighted admissions (10,420 weighted) for intermediate or high-risk PE and cancer were included, of which 136 (6.5%) were treated with CBT. After IPTW, CBT was associated with lower death or CA (aOR 0.54, 95% CI 0.46-0.64) but higher major bleeding (aOR 1.41, 95% CI 1.21-1.65). After stratifying by PE risk type, patients treated with CBT had lower risk of death or CA in both intermediate (aOR 0.52, 95% CI 0.36-0.75) and high-risk PE (aOR 0.48, 95% CI 0.33-0.53). However, patients with CBT were associated with increased risk of major bleeding in intermediate-risk PE (aOR 2.12, 95% CI 1.67-2.69) but not in those with high-risk PE (aOR 0.84, 95% CI 0.66-1.07). CONCLUSIONS:Among patients with cancer hospitalized with intermediate or high-risk PE, treatment with CBT was associated with lower risk of in-hospital death or CA but higher risk of bleeding. Prospective studies and inclusion of patients with cancer in randomized trials are warranted to confirm our findings.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW/OBJECTIVE:To describe medical therapies and mechanical circulatory support devices used in the treatment of acute right ventricular failure. RECENT FINDINGS/RESULTS:Experts have proposed several algorithms providing a stepwise approach to medical optimization of acute right ventricular failure including tailored volume administration, ideal vasopressor selection to support coronary perfusion, inotropes to restore contractility, and pulmonary vasodilators to improve afterload. Studies have investigated various percutaneous and surgically implanted right ventricular assist devices in several clinical settings. The initial management of acute right ventricular failure is often guided by invasive hemodynamic data tracking parameters of circulatory function with the use of pharmacologic therapies. Percutaneous microaxial and centrifugal extracorporeal pumps bypass the failing RV and support circulatory function in severe cases of right ventricular failure.

• PE is very rarely identified on TTE. • Saddle PE does not represent a higher-risk subset of PE. • Catheter-based therapies are becoming more commonplace in the management of acute PE.

BACKGROUND/UNASSIGNED:Acute mortality for high-risk, or massive, pulmonary embolism (PE) is almost 30% even when treated using advanced therapies. This analysis assessed the safety and effectiveness of mechanical thrombectomy (MT) for high-risk PE. METHODS/UNASSIGNED:The prospective, multicenter FlowTriever All-comer Registry for Patient Safety and Hemodynamics (FLASH) study is designed to evaluate real-world PE patient outcomes after MT with the FlowTriever System (Inari Medical). In this study, acute outcomes through 30 days were evaluated for the subset of patients with high-risk PE as determined by the sites and following European Society of Cardiology guidelines. An independent medical monitor adjudicated adverse events (AEs), including major AEs: device-related mortality, major bleeding, or intraprocedural device-related or procedure-related AEs. RESULTS/UNASSIGNED:. Immediately after MT, heart rate improved to 93.5 ± 17.9 bpm. Twenty-five (42.4%) patients did not require an overnight stay in the intensive care unit, and no mortalities or major AEs occurred through 48 hours. Moreover, no mortalities occurred in 61 (96.8%) patients followed up through the 30-day visit. CONCLUSIONS/UNASSIGNED:In this cohort of 63 patients with high-risk PE, MT was safe and effective, with no acute mortalities reported. Further prospective data are needed in this population.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE), which includes pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis, carries significant morbidity and mortality risks, and is conventionally managed with anticoagulation. In recent years, notable progress has been made in the therapeutic options available for the acute treatment of VTE. The heterogeneity within pulmonary embolism, spanning a wide spectrum of risks, underscores the critical need for precise risk stratification, particularly in identifying individuals prone to right heart failure and increased mortality. This review navigates the transformative developments in VTE approaches, focusing on the diagnosis and management of acute VTE in the critical care setting. It encompasses developing critical care approaches to intermediate- and high-risk pulmonary embolism, the treatment of right heart failure, and the integration of mechanical circulatory support, providing comprehensive insights into risk stratification, emerging interventions, and evolving treatment strategies. It is important to note that some of the novel therapies are still under clinical trials and, despite promising reports, are not yet considered standard of care.

Exceeding the limit of pericardial stretch, intrapericardial collections exert compression on the right heart and decrease preload. Compensatory mechanisms ensue to maintain hemodynamics in the face of a depressed stroke volume but are outstripped as disease progresses. When constrained within a pressurized pericardial space, the right and left ventricles exhibit differential filling mediated by changes in intrathoracic pressure. Invasive hemodynamics and echocardiographic findings inform on the physiologic effects. In this review, we describe tamponade physiology and implications for supportive care and effusion drainage.